India secured a 3-2 victory in the five-match T20I series against New Zealand, winning the first three encounters before the hosts bounced back to claim the final two matches. The series also marked India’s first T20I series triumph in a SENA nation under the captaincy of Shreyas Iyer. Former India cricketer Ajay Jadeja shared his assessment of Iyer’s leadership during the series on SonyLIV. He praised the young captain for maintaining a consistent approach and displaying confidence in his decisions throughout the campaign.
Ajay Jadeja felt Iyer had shown a clear understanding of his responsibilities and was comfortable making decisions according to his instincts. “I think Shreyas Iyer’s captaincy has been consistent since the time I have seen him. He is a confident, young captain. He does what he likes. He even tried a little today,” Jadeja said on SonyLIV.
However, the former cricketer also highlighted how India’s bowling combination influenced Iyer’s tactical options. During the first four T20Is, Nitish Kumar Reddy was used as the fourth or fifth bowling option, while Axar Patel operated alongside three specialist seamers.
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India made a change for the fifth T20I by bringing Varun Chakravarthy into the playing XI. His inclusion provided Iyer with another recognised bowling option, although Nitish continued to remain part of the bowling plans. According to Jadeja, a captain’s ability to make tactical changes depends heavily on the availability of five specialist bowling options. He argued that teams relying on fewer established bowlers naturally restrict their captain’s choices during crucial phases of a match.
“He tried to make changes in the bowling differently when he had five pure bowlers. However, until you play five bowlers, what decision can a captain make? He doesn’t have choices at all. If you ask me, I talk about five bowlers. If you see any series of 10 matches, the No. 6 to No. 8 don’t get to bat until the 18th over, but all five bowlers bowl in those 10 matches. It’s your choice how you want to see it. When a team plays five bowlers, the captain’s hands are not tied,” Ajay Jadeja added.
Ajay Jadeja also discussed India’s preference for selecting additional batting options and all-rounders instead of fielding five specialist bowlers. He described the strategy as a double-edged sword, explaining that its effectiveness depends on whether India bat first or chase a target.
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India’s successful chase of 225 in the opening T20I demonstrated the benefits of having extra batting depth. However, the approach proved costly in the fourth match, when India suffered an 87-run defeat. Jadeja believes neither approach is necessarily right or wrong, as it ultimately reflects the team’s preferred playing philosophy.
“Our thought process is that we are going more towards all-rounders. That’s a double-edged sword. The day you have to bat first, it’s a loss, which we got to see in the last match. However, if you bat second — you chased 225 in the first match — it goes in your favor. It’s a policy decision or a difference in the team’s thought process. There is no right or wrong in that,” Ajay Jadeja said.
